Tenseigan Evolution, Complete

As if in response to his call.

The ground began to shake.

It wasn't the dull, deep-seated tremor that came from the earth's crust when the Ten-Tails awakened, but a more orderly, more precise mechanical vibration, as if some massive mechanism had been activated.

Four crimson beams of light shot into the sky from four different directions outside the east gate of Konoha.

This wasn't the temporary barrier Tsunade and the others had maintained before; it was much more solid, more substantial, and carried the aura of an ancient seal.

"Four Red Yang Formation - Modified!"

Four figures slowly rose from the pillar of light.

The First Hokage, Hashirama Senju, clasped his hands together, his Wood Release Chakra as vast as the ocean.

The Second Hokage Tobirama Senju, Tobirama Senju, Hand Seals, his Water Release aura chilling to the bone.

The Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi, Chakra flowing around his body.

The Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, had the golden Flying Thunder God Mark shimmering in his palm.

The four Hokage, resurrected through the Impure World Reincarnation technique.

But their eyes were empty, and their foreheads were covered with talismans inscribed with incantations, clearly indicating that Orochimaru had completely controlled their consciousness. Following pre-set instructions, they simultaneously formed the same hand seals—

The crimson barrier rose once more.

This time, however, the scope was smaller, but the intensity was higher and the target was more clearly defined.

The barrier did not cover the grove of trees from Obito had flown out, nor did it cover the six Allied Forces members in the distance. Instead, it precisely and perfectly enveloped the Demonic Statue of the Outer Path, Neji standing atop the Mazo, and the two figures that had just emerged from the ground beneath the Mazo.

And those two figures were—

Orochimaru.

And, Impure World Reincarnation Nagato.

Orochimaru was still wearing his white lab coat, his golden snake eyes gleaming with almost fanatical excitement under the light of the crimson barrier. He licked his lips, his hands already Hand Seals, complex jutsu spreading across the ground and resonating with the barrier of the four Hokage.

And Nagato...

His greyish-white Impure World Reincarnation body Rinnegan projection slowly rotating in his eye sockets. His expression was numb, and a control talisman was pasted on his forehead, but deep within those eyes, a lingering flame of "revenge" seemed to still burn. He looked in the direction Obito had flown Obito the barrier, then at Neji atop the golem's head, and finally at Orochimaru, awaiting instructions.

The Four Red Yang Formation (modified) is now complete.

This time, the barrier isn't meant to trap Obito, but to protect him.

To protect Neji during his absorption of the Ten-Tails Chakra, ensuring he is not disturbed by anyone or anything.

The moment Neji uttered those words, he no longer looked in the direction Obito had flown, no longer looked at the shocked Allied Forces outside the barrier, and no longer looked at Orochimaru and Nagato beneath his feet.

His entire attention was focused on the Incomplete Ten-Tails in front of him.

No, to be more precise, it's concentrated in the Chakra of the Nine Tailed Beasts within the Ten-Tails' body.

The fury of the One-Tail Beast, the azure of the Two-Tails- Three-Tails, the depth of the Four-Tails Beast, the heat of the Five-Tails Beast, the corrosive power of the Six-Tails -Seven-Tails, the illusion of the Eight-Tails, the lightning of the Eight-Tailed Beast, and the Nine-Tails Chakra, though incomplete, yet complete in its attributes, brought by the Kinkaku and Ginkaku Brothers.

Nine powers, nine colors, flow, collide, and merge within the Ten-Tails, giving birth to a divine power that transcends all common sense, all theories, and all Ninjutsu systems.

Neji closed his eyes, then opened them again.

The Byakugan's field of vision is opened to its maximum.

The veins around his pupils bulged to the point of almost bursting. In his 360-degree field of vision, the appearance of the world was stripped away, leaving only the most essential flow of Chakra. He saw the nine-colored energy flows within the Ten-Tails, saw the point where they converged, and saw the energy core that was forming, like a miniature sun.

Then, he began to absorb it.

It wasn't like Obito's plan, to become the Ten-Tails Jinchuriki and seal the Ten-Tails into his body.

Instead, it's a more direct, brutal, and dangerous approach—

They directly extracted Chakra from the Ten-Tails' body.

Like inserting a straw into juice, like pumping water from a lake, like devouring everything with the most greedy gluttony.

Neji spread his arms, palms facing the eight half-open eyes of the Ten-Tails. He didn't use any Hand Seals or techniques, relying solely on the power of his Byakugan and the near-perfect Chakra control he had achieved through three years of arduous training.

Start the extraction.

The first Chakra was orange-red.

It belongs to the Nine-Tails, a warm, vast, and hateful power.

When that Chakra surged into Neji's body through an invisible channel, his entire body trembled violently. Fox-face-like patterns appeared on his skin, his eyes instantly turned into beastly pupils, his teeth became sharp, and his nails grew longer—it was the erosion of the Nine-Tails Chakra, the backlash of the Tailed Beast's will.

But Neji gritted his teeth.

Yin Seal, open!

On his forehead, a diamond-shaped purple mark lit up instantly. The massive Chakra he had stored up over the past three years, equivalent to ten times his own total Chakra, surged out like a flood, colliding and entangled fiercely with the Nine-Tails Chakra, and was ultimately forcibly suppressed.

The first thread: taming.

Then came the second strand—the violent Chakra, the One-Tail Shukaku, carrying the scent of sand and dust.

The Two-Tails wisp—the ghostly blue flame of Matatabi.

The fourth strand – the deep-sea Uzumaki of the Isobu.

The fifth strand, the sixth strand, the seventh strand, the eighth strand...

Nine colors of Chakra, like nine raging dragons, surged wildly into his body through the passage Neji had created. His body became a battlefield, the wills of the nine Tailed Beast roaring, clashing, and vying for dominance within his consciousness. The characteristics of various Tailed Beast constantly appeared on his skin— Shukaku's tattoos, Matatabi's flames, Isobu's scales, Son Gokū's lava, Kokuō's steam, Saiken's slime, Chomei's insect wings, Gyuki's tentacles, and Nine-Tails's demon fox cloak...

He was struggling on the verge of losing control.

The Hashirama Cells played a role at this moment.

"Wood Release, activate!"

The transplanted cells from the First Hokage within Neji's body began to proliferate wildly. The life force of Yang Release, like the gentlest tide, soothed the rage of the Tailed Beast Chakra and repaired the meridians that had been ravaged by the impact.

"Senjutsu, Harmony!"

Natural Energy converged from all directions, acting as a neutral mediator, building a bridge of balance among the nine types of Chakra. Neji's three years of Senjutsu Mode training were fully displayed at this moment. He guided the Natural Energy, forcibly harmonizing the nine distinct Chakra attributes into a stable, all-encompassing "chaotic" state.

And in this process, his eyes—

Evolution begins.

Click.

The first crisp sound came from the specially made lenses in both eyes.

Under the impact of the Ten-Tails Chakra, spiderweb-like cracks appeared on the surface. The cracks spread rapidly, eventually—

Bang.

The lens shattered completely, and fragments fell from the eye socket, revealing the real eyes behind it, eyes that belonged to Neji Hyuga.

That's the Byakugan.

But it's no longer just a regular Byakugan.

The color of the pupils is changing from pure white to a deep, emerald-green. The whites of the eyes are becoming purer and brighter, as if some inner light is about to shine through the depths of the pupils. The blue veins around the pupils are gradually receding, replaced by a more delicate and refined pale gold pattern, like some ancient and sacred runes, slowly emerging around the eye sockets.

Evolution has begun.

The second crisp sound came from the human skin mask on the face.

The face of that middle-aged man with short, dark brown hair, deep-set eyes, and high cheekbones, belonging to the "Sake" type, began to distort and peel away under the onslaught of the Ten-Tails Chakra. The edges of the mask curled up, like pieces of paper burned by fire, peeling off the skin to reveal the young, true face of Neji Hyuga beneath.

A young face of seventeen years old. Delicate features, well-defined contours; if it weren't for that thing on his forehead, it would be a face that could attract the attention of many girls, a face belonging to a "genius".

But that thing on my forehead is still there.

The Caged Bird Seal.

A blue pattern, resembling a bird trapped in a cage, was deeply imprinted in the center of his forehead. It was neither a tattoo nor a mark, but rather a malevolent curse that seemed to grow from the depths of his soul. Even under the light of the Ten-Tails Chakra, it still exuded a cold and chilling aura.

That's a constraint.

Those are shackles.

That was the cage that determined Neji Hyuga's fate from the moment he was born.

And now, this cage is about to be broken.

Neji opened his eyes—no, at this moment it should perhaps be called the "Tenseigan".

Those eyes had turned completely blue-green, with stars seemingly spinning and galaxies flowing deep within their pupils. Wherever his gaze fell, the appearances of the world were stripped away, leaving only the most essential flow of Chakra, spatial structure, and temporal trajectory. He could even "see" the Caged Bird Seal on his forehead, and see the sealing network deep within that Curse Mark, connecting every member of the Hyuga Branch Family, spanning a thousand years.

"Not enough..."

Neji murmured to himself, his voice hoarse from the immense pain he was enduring, but within it burned an unprecedented power called "hope."

He increased the extraction rate.

The Chakra within the Ten-Tails surged towards him even more frantically, like a flood bursting its banks. The Incomplete Ten-Tails began to writhe restlessly, its eight half-open eyes trembling violently, as if trying to close, to resist, to shake off this greedy thief.

However, the modified Four Red Yang Formation maintained by the four Hokage firmly trapped it in place.

At this moment, Impure World Reincarnation's Rinnegan power, resurrected through Nagato, was also suppressing the remaining Tailed Beast will within him.

Neji, like the most gluttonous beast, continued to devour.

The evolution of the Tenseigan has entered its final stage.

The bluish-green pupils grew brighter, as if two miniature suns were burning within their sockets. Pale golden lines began to spread around the eyes, like some kind of sacred totem, extending from the corners of the eyes to the temples, to the sides of the forehead, and finally—

It made contact with the edge of the Caged Bird Seal.

Laugh--!!!

Like a red-hot iron block falling into ice water, like the ultimate collision of light and darkness.

The power of the Tenseigan and the power of the Caged Bird Seal clashed fiercely on Neji's forehead.

The cyan light attempted to purify the cyan Curse Mark, while the cyan Curse Mark attempted to erode the cyan light. The two forces clashed silently yet fiercely on Neji's forehead.

Neji's face was contorted in extreme pain, his teeth grinding together, and blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. But he didn't stop; instead, he frantically drew out the Ten-Tails Chakra, channeling even more power into his Tenseigan.

Give me--

Break--!!!

The final roar exploded from the depths of his soul.

Boom--!!!

A bluish-green light, like a supernova explosion, burst forth from Neji's eyes, his forehead, and every pore of his body. The intensity of the light even temporarily surpassed the crimson of the Four Red Yang Formation, the nine-colored stream of light from the Ten-Tails Chakra, and the rising sun of the morning.

And at the very center of the light—

The Caged Bird Seal began to melt, like ice and snow exposed to sunlight.

It is not erased, not covered up, but truly "purified" at the level of existence.

The blue pattern began to transform into specks of light from its edges, which then dissipated, merged into the air, and finally disappeared completely. As the last wisp of blue faded from his forehead, Neji felt an unprecedented sense of relief.

It was as if a mountain had been removed from my back.

It felt as if a noose around my neck had been cut.

It was as if a shackle deep within the soul had been shattered.

Fourteen years have passed (the children of the Hyuga Branch Family have been marked with the Caged Bird Seal since they were three years old).

From the moment of his birth, something existed that determined his status as a member of Branch House, and destined him to live his entire life in the shadow of the Main House—

The Caged Bird is broken.

But that's not all.

Neji's Tenseigan looked towards Konoha.

The gaze wasn't directed towards the battlefield, nor towards the Allied Forces, but towards the depths of Konoha, beneath the Hyuga Main House's main residence—a place hidden for a thousand years, its exact location known only to the core members of the Main House.

Casting Chamber.

There, lies the Hyuga Clan's greatest secret and greatest shame: the engraving device for the Caged Bird Seal.

It was an ancient and complex sealing device designed by the First Main House Head and improved by dozens of Main House. Every child of the Hyuga Branch Family would be taken there shortly after birth and have Curse Mark engraved on that device, a seal that would accompany them for life. And that device itself was the "source" of all the Caged Bird Seal, the "heart" that maintained this abnormal system.

Now, Neji destroy that heart.

The power of the Tenseigan traversed several kilometers, penetrating layers of barriers and rock formations, precisely locking onto that secret room and that instrument.

He saw it.

It was a device shaped like a birdcage, forged from some special Chakra Metal. A blue gem floated in the center of the cage, and sealed inside the gem was the eye power and will of the First Main House Head. Whenever a child from Branch House was brought here, the Main House's sorcerer would guide the child's chakra to resonate with the gem, and then carve Curse Mark of the same origin as the gem on the child's forehead.

It's been a thousand years.

This instrument has been running for thousands of years, imprinting the names of tens of thousands of Branch House members and creating tens of thousands of tragedies.

And now--

Neji activated his Tenseigan at full power.

The emerald green light condensed to its peak in his eyes, then transformed into two invisible beams of pupil energy that traversed space, precisely striking the instrument in the secret room.

It's not destruction, it's not annihilation, it's "decomposition".

Using the power of the Tenseigan, he sealed away the instrument, the gem, and the First Main House Head's ocular power and will within it—at the molecular level, at the Chakra structure level, and at the level of existence—

Completely erase.

Click.

Cracks appeared on the surface of the instrument.

Click, click.

The cracks spread.

Then--

Bang--!!!

The entire instrument, along with the cyan gemstone, transformed into a cloud of cyan light. The light filled the sealed room, then gradually dissipated, leaving nothing behind.

Engraving equipment, permanently damaged.

And at the very moment the instrument was destroyed—

On the battlefield, Hyuga Hiashi's body jolted violently.

He was standing on the walls of Konoha, directing the Hyuga Clan ninjas to resist the White Zetsu's attack. As the Main House and the Hyuga Clan, he could sense the state, location, and even emotions of every Branch House member through the Caged Bird Seal.

But just a moment ago—

All connections are down.

It wasn't just one Branch House member whose connection was broken; it was all the Branch House members whose connections were broken simultaneously.

Like a net covering the entire clan, all the threads were severed in an instant. All the subtle Chakra feedback transmitted through the Caged Bird Seal, like background noise, vanished.

Hyuga Hiashi's face turned deathly pale instantly.

He instinctively raised his hand to touch his forehead—there was nothing there; the Main House didn't have the Caged Bird Seal. But he could feel that absolute control the Main House had over the Branch House for thousands of years, that deep-seated, taken-for-granted sense of dominance—

It disappeared.

Completely, permanently, vanished.

He turned his head, looking towards the direction of the Four Red Yang Formation, towards the figure suspended in mid-air, radiating a bluish-green light. The distance was too great to see the face clearly, but those eyes... those bluish-green eyes, seemingly capable of seeing through everything...

Is it Neji?

Neji Hyuga, the son of his younger brother who defected three years ago and was classified as S-Rank Missing-Nin?

Hyuga Hiashi's lips moved, as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he said nothing. He just stood there, pale-faced, his eyes filled with an extremely complex mix of emotions—shock, anger, and panic, but deep down, perhaps, there was also a hint of something he himself didn't even realize...

Relief?

On the battlefield, the other Hyuga Branch Family ninjas reacted even more directly.

A Hyuga ninja who was using his Byakugan to monitor the White Zetsu army suddenly stopped.

He raised his hand blankly and touched his forehead.

There is none left.

That blue mark, imprinted there since he was three years old, accompanying him for over thirty years, constantly reminding him that "you belong to Branch House, you are inferior, and your destiny is not in your own hands"—

It disappeared.

The skin is smooth, and there's nothing there.

"Gone... gone?" he murmured, his voice trembling.

Another Hyuga Branch Family Chunin next to him touched his forehead, then his eyes widened. "Really... it's gone! The Caged Bird... it's gone!"

"Mine are all gone too!"

"Me too!"

Exclamations of surprise echoed Hyuga Clan the ranks of the Hyuga ninja. They stopped fighting, checked on each other, touched their own foreheads, then their companions' foreheads, their faces filled with disbelief and shock, followed by ecstasy, and then... a near-manic sense of relief.

It's been a thousand years.

The Hyuga Branch Family was bound by the Caged Bird Seal for a thousand years.

Every member of the Branch House knows their fate from the moment they are old enough to understand—to protect the Main House, to die for the Main House, to never disobey the Main House's orders, to never covet the Main House's secrets, and to always be second-class.

Now, the shackles are broken.

Although the system remains, and the distinction between the Main House Branch House still exists, the most core, the most fundamental, and the most inescapable constraint remains—

That's all.

"Who did this?" A young Hyuga Branch Family Chunin at the distant green light, his eyes filled with admiration and gratitude.

No one answered.

And everyone will know the answer soon.